Be Careful Chapter 19-5
---- '19-5 Interlude 3 A Day In The Life' Author's Notes:Okay! This is another Interlude born from a question of a friend. Said question was 'What does Ruukoto think about and do since she's quiet most of the time.' Well, here's my answer. A day in the life of Ruukoto and the start of S2. Also, there has been some issues about the endings I made for S1. Some people liked the inclusion of Touhou Rider Reimu as a more light-hearted approach to the next season. Some people did not like it because it didn't really make much sense (even though it does if you're familiar with Kamen Rider Decade). So, I decided to do both. Yeah... The ending of S1 posted in the previous chapter is stay and will be the 'True Route'. I will post another version of the ending along with the 2nd part of 'Immateriality of Ibuki Suika' as an AU 'What If Route'. Yes, this means that I will post the story that included Touhou Rider Reimu in this story on Touhou Rider Reimu...which means that story will finally come back to life. The Be Careful What You Wish for arc of Touhou Rider Reimu will only be part of her journey and story, so it will be written in her perspective. Because of this, chapters for both stories will update slower since I will be writing two versions of the same story. However, the one that will REALLY get hit is my My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic crossover with Familiar of Zero 'Guided by the Light of the Moon.' I originally started that story on a whim and, while I have a general idea on how I want the story to go, I have no solid story map for it yet. I'll try...I really will, but this and Touhou Rider Reimu will be my main priorities. Also, chapters will slow down in general because of Skyrim so I can only write at work now. Whew! Anyway, please enjoy as always. Disclaimer: F*cking Skyrim! ---- '19-5-Interlude3-ADayInTheLife' Running Systems Check... Energy Levels...Nominal... Erde Kaiser Sigma Type-Seven Efficiency...Nominal... Processing Systems...Nominal... Memory Systems...Nominal... Sensors...Nominal... Frame Integrity...Physical Damage to Frame Nintey-Nine Percent Repaired...Continuing with Self-Repair Protocols... Communications...Nominal... Weapons Systems...Those available are nominal... Special Abilities...Those available are nominal... I finish my daily self system check within the esitimated time of completion. I refer back to my internal clock for the relative time on this world. Four Twenty-Six in the morning. I open my eyes and begin an automatic scan of my surroundings. My location had not changed nor did I expect it to. I gaze upon the sleeping form of my current employer, Mistress Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere. After a quick check on the internal nanomachines that my mistress had, I quickly concluded that she was of excellent physical health. I stood from the chair I was using for the night and silently took a closer look at my mistress. She was a small child by the standards of all the realms I have been on. Mistress Louise was already well within adolescence in terms of age but her body had not seemed to develop like a normal young woman would. I had originally inferred that it was due to poor health or malnutrition. However, I had since concluded that the cause was because of a hormonal imbalance in her body. Because of the rate of her development through puberty, I concluded that she was to expect a significant growth spurt on all accounts of her physical development within the next three to five years. Her often abrupt change in mood could also be attributed to her hormonal imbalance as well. I left the room after confirming my mistress' safety, health and comfort. Based on past experiences and the fact that Yuka Kazami was still absent from the bedroom, I concluded that they were both still in the dream realm of Mugenkan. As such, the expected time of Mistress Louise's awakening was between Seven to Eight in the morning, local time. I walked through the halls of the main dormitory tower of the Tristain Magic Academy in relative silence. It was still dark out and the students were not expected to awaken until Five in the morning, local time, with Miss Tabitha of Gallia being the usual one to awaken first. I step outside and detected a slow but constant decrease in the early morning temperature in relation to previous mornings. I concluded that the seasons were starting to change. I detected movement from outside one of the main buildings and inferred that it was one of the servants preparing for the day's duties. A small bit of curiosity and the general sense of having nothing to do for the next few hours fueled my impulse to investigate the movement I detected. "Good morning to you Ruukoto, early as always I see." The source of the detected movement said to me. It was Siesta, the Great Grand Daughter of the man who first found me in this realm. Her bloodline could somehow be traced back to Gensokyo, through the specifics on how a human from the Eastern Wonderland ended up here was kept secret even from me by a certain entity. "Fuga." I returned the greeting with a bow. There were only two beings that I know of in this realm that could understand me without the use of Professor Uzuki's translation software, Siesta is one of them. "Fuga?" I offered after noticing the bundle of laundry in her arms. Despite the young woman's polite and unassuming appearance, she had physical strength and endurance that one would usually attribute more with a professional athlete. "That's okay, this isn't anything I can't take care of on my own. Though, I would enjoy some company while I take care of these." Siesta turned down my offer while providing a counter-offer with an acceptable compromise. The young woman was a consummate professional in her craft whether anyone realizes this or not...even Siesta herself. I nodded in acceptance and we walked together to her usual spot when doing the laundry. Despite my prowess and accomplishments in combat and the like, I was still a maid at the core. Seeing Siesta perform duties that I usually do evoked a strange strange sense of nostaliga. I still remember the days when Mistress Reimu made me perform all the chores at the shrine. It had already been a little over five hundred years since she passed away. I never did manage to bring back the groceries she asked for... "I would like to thank you again..." I heard Siesta say just as she started the initial soaking process of her laundry bundle. She said in softly but I was still able to pick it up thanks to my audio sensors. "Fuga?" I asked her with a tilt of my head for clarification. I could not recall any instance that would prompt such thanks in my memory banks aside from our usual professional courtesies. "For saving Tarbes, silly." Siesta answered with a small laugh as she begun her work. I remained silent as I inferred that she still had something she wanted to say. "If it wasn't for you, Yuka, and Louise, my family wouldn't have a home anymore." Siesta clarified after noticing my silence. "Fuga. Fuga Fuga." I immediately stated with a shake of my head. I did not believe that I deserve thanks or praise for my actions at the village of Tarbes. While I was known as the Steel Goddess of Tarbes, it was through the initiative and volition of Mistress Louise that I was even given the opportunity to protect it. If anyone deserved thanks, it would be Mistress Louise. Siesta gave me another one of those small laughs before looking at me with a wry smile. "Even so, you fought and protected our village. For that, you have my heartfelt thanks." The young woman told me with a geniunely grateful smile. "...Fuga." And all I could do was acknowledge that and tell her that she was welcome. I made my way back to Mistress Louise's room as soon as I noticed her vital signs start to pick up, indicative of someone rising from sleep. I entered the room and closed the door, just as my mistress started to wake up. I immediately want to the wardrobe and picked out some clothes for my mistress. "Haaaaahhh~! Good Morning Ruukoto~" Louise greeted before going beginning her morning ritual of scratching her chest while making 'Munya~!' noises and looking around lazily. It usually takes Mistress Louise an average of ten to fifteen minutes for her to fully wake up, by which time I would already have all her clothes ready and waiting for her. As per our standard routine, my mistress blinked away the last specks of sleepiness before standing up and taking off her night gown. I had heard from her and Yuka that she had originally tried to get the flower youkai to dress her when they first encountered each other. The notion that the Sleeping Terror of Gensokyo would do such a thing was rather absurd, even moreso the fact that someone had the courage to try to ask. However, my mistress had grown to learn the value of self-reliance as she has been actively changing her clothes by herself. The most I really had to do was prepare her clothes beforehand and assist her whenever needed. "Yuka won't be back until later this afternoon," Mistress Louise suddenly started a conversation. "Fuga?" I asked while tilting my head to the side and got an 'urk' in response. She then sighed before looking at me intently while humming to herself as she continued to change her clothes. While she did not explicitly understand my words when I was using my standard operating parameters, Mistress Louise had somehow started developing a means approximating what my words mean based of my reactions to her own words as well as my gestures. Yuka was correct when he once told me that my mistress has become far more skilled than even she herself realized. Although he also said that he would never admit it to her face as it may end up 'inflating her ego' as the genderbent youkai put it. "If your asking why Yuka's staying behind, it's because he need to talk to someone named Nitori about the rest of your abilities and such. He said that he wanted to know more about what you can do and if we can unlock some new things for you to do as well." Mistress Louise provided and I nodded in acknowledgement. While I appreciate Yuka's thoroughness when it came to knowing more about my capabilites and his willingness to help in removing some of the Level Five Locks on my systems, I had hoped that he could have told me beforehand first. I may need to speak to him about that later. I turned my attention back to Mistress Louise just as she placed the Founder's Prayer Book on her head before putting her hat on to cover it. From what I could sense, there was an enchantment placed on the hat that would prevent anything from removing it short of Mistress Louise herself doing so or if the spell was removed somehow. I have also tried to scan the Founder's Prayer Book on request from Yuka and my mistress after it was revealed that it had imparted two new Void Element spells for my mistress' use. However, I was not able to effectively decipher anything useful from the book that hasn't already been revealed. The system of magic being used for it was already a mystery to the very civilization where it originated from, much more for an outsider who was used to completely different magic systems. Without a proper reference guide or software to be able to unlock its secrets, I was not able to find out anything new about the book. "Since there won't be any school until further notice, I'll be doing some independent training for the rest of the day." My mistress informed me as she placed her spare wand in her clothes while putting her normal wand in her skirt pocket. I looked at her as inquisitively as possible. She either immediately picked it up or was anticipating anticipating my confusion as Mistress Louise continued. "It's not like there's anything else to do with everyone else gone." She somewhat bitterly said with a shrug. The main cause of her distress was because all her friends had left the academy for various reasons. Miss Kirche Augusta Frederica von Anhalt Zerbst was called back by her family in the country of Germania due to the events at Tarbes. Miss Kirche said that she never told her family about her involvement in the battle and simply concluded that her family was simply worried about her. She had also made it a point to bring Miss Tabitha of Gallia with her since she wanted to introduce her best friend to her family. Miss Tabitha did not seem opposed to the idea and simply made sure that she had an ample supply of books with her. Miss Kirche also extended the same offer to my mistress and Yuka, to which they automatically declined. Miss Montmorency Margarita la Fere de Montmorency also went back to her family home but for a different reason. She had told my mistress that she wanted to formally introduce Sir Guiche de Gramont to her family as her lover and potential husband. Sir Guiche pointedly ignored my mistress' question if she was really sure that she wanted to introduce Sir Guiche to her family in that way. Miss Montmorency assured Mistress Louise that she was sure and she hoped that my mistress found someone whom she could think of the same way. Mistress Louise pointedly ignored Miss Kirche waving to her when Miss Montmorency said those words. "Fuga?" I inquired from my mistress. She looked at me for a few moments, probably trying to figure out what my question was and how to respond to it. She hummed thoughtfully while rubbing her chin with her right hand. In all honestly, it would have been more efficient if she had called Siesta here or she could have told me to use 'White Noise' so she could understand me. "If you're still asking me something even after I already told you what I was doing, that means..." Mistress Louise muttered while seemingly thinking about the possible questions I could have made based on the circumstances. "There is a clearing in the woods to the southwest of the academy. I'll be training there. If you're planning on bringing me anything for lunch, please bring something light but tasty and would give me energy. Oh, and bring water if you can instead of wine. Cirno-nee said that water beats wine any day when it comes to quenching your thirst. Anything else?" She laid out most of the things I wanted to ask her with her specific requests for each. Although she was still missing some thing so I slowly nodded. Louise narrowed her eyes at me before humming in contemplation. "Bring a change of clothes for me and a bucket of water and something I can use to wash with. If I'll be out there as long as I expect, I will probably work up quite the sweat. Did I get everything now?" Mistress Louise asked me with a slightly irritated expression...which softened the moment I nodded in response. "Fuga." I stated before pulling out a 'Hey-Listen' and offering it to her. She smiled and nodded before taking it and putting it in her ear. "Oh, and you can do whatever you want until you have to bring me all those things. See you later Ruukoto." My mistress said before opening the door to leave. "Fuga." I acknowledge with a low bow before standing back up straight when I heard the door close behind her. Mistress Louise just gave me the morning off...and I wasn't sure what I should do with it. I tried to pass the extra time my mistress gave me by preparing what she requested earlier. However, I found that I was able to accomplish all the tasks in an hour and a half. I looked at the basket filled with bread, cooked ham, cheese, and two bottles of water. I was not sure what would constitute as light but tasty and would provide her energy as far as my mistress' personal taste was concerned. That was why I decided to go with a favorite midnight snack of Professor Uzuki whenever she had projects she needed to finish...Ham and Cheese Sandwiches...or the main components of it. I quietly lamented the lack of sliced bread in this realm. The water bottles were harder to come by, relatively speaking. The relative time era that Halkeginia was in lacked the proper means to properly distill water into something remotely safe to drink, which was part of the reason why wine became a staple drink in the realm for nobility aside from their aristocratic origins. Due to the inability to properly distill the drinking water using normal means, the only other way to be able to do remove any dangerous microorganisms would be through boiling the water enought to eliminate all threats. Normally, one would need to boil water multiple times to be able to get the full effect of a pure distillation...however, I cheated. I borrowed a large unused iron pot, used by the kitchen staff to make the amounts of stew that would satisfy the student body, and filled it with water before using my R-Blade to superheat the water. The reaction produced an incredible amount of steam and reduced the amount of water in the pot to ten percent of the original amount. It was horribly inefficient but it produced the desired effect, enough pure clean water to fill two wine bottles. I then turned to the bucket of water and rag I set aside for my mistress' washing purposes. That was a more straightforward objective, though finding a clean enough piece of cloth for Mistress Louise to wash herself with took a bit of time as well. Finally, I turned to the folded set of clothes for my mistress to change in should she need them...that was the easiest objective to accomplish. I blinked before checking my internal clock. It was just past nine in the morning. Much too early to go to my mistress' training ground. I idly noted that her vitals were going up at a steady rate...it seemed that she was stepping up her training there. I covered the food basket with a clean piece of cloth before exiting my mistress' room. I stared at the door handle as I wondered what I could for the duration of my free time. I usually spent my days here helping the servants of the academy with their chores until either Mistress Louise or Yuka called for me or until I needed to find either of them. However, with most of the students gone because of the suspension of classes, the only ones left were a few students, staff, and servants. As such, the amount of active chores to do lessened significantly so the remaining servants were more than enough to take care of them. I closed my eyes and checked for known human life forms within the academy premises. A moment later I walked off to find a place to pass the time. After I wandered around for a while...or specifically, set a route in which I would eventually end up at my destination after a certain amount of time...I found myself standing in front of the workshop of one Professor Jean Colbert. Based of the words of my mistress, Yuka, as well as my own experience with the professor, I found him to be a rare breed of magician in this realm. He was one who was open to new avenues of thought and concepts when it came to the applications of magic. Upon further observation, he was one who did not care for the boundaries between science and magic and strived to be able to utilize both as much as possible. An innovator in a world that was culturally and technologically stagnant for six thousand years. A very dangerous and difficult road to take for one person alone. "Miss Ruukoto?" As predicted, the professor returned from the academy library moments after I arrived in front of his shop. "Fuga." I greeted the man with a low bow. The professor blinked at me before giving a good natured smile. "Good morning to you too. You are not with Miss Valliere or Mister Yuka today?" He returned my greeting, likely deducting context of my bow despite his inability to understand my words, before asking his question. "Fuga." I responded with a shake of my head. The man stared at me for a moment before shaking his head with a sigh. I tilted my head to the side in silent query at his abrupt change in demeanor. "Sometimes I forget that you aren't human. It will be a very long time before we can even hope to create something like you." The man responded after a while. That was what he was worrying about? That I was so far more advanced than any machine they had or would likely have in centuries. The closest approximation that I knew of to an android in this realm would be mechanical magic powered dolls. However, they were not sentient and required a dedicated mage to be able to control them dynamically outside of a very specific control spell that will only make them do a few things. "Would you like to come inside? Since you are here, I wanted your insight on something." Professor Colbert offered before opening the door to his workshop. Having nothing else to do, I followed him in. I scanned the surroundings and noted that he had the same cleaning habits that Professor Uzuki had, which was none. I inferred that this was a traditional trademark of innovators regardless of specified field. Senors also picked up traces of magical energy, experiments most likely. "I apologize for the mess, I will get this room clean someday. Please have a seat." The professor said while gesturing to a nearby chair. I complied and waited for him to prepare whatever it was he wanted my opinion on. Normally I would offer to clean the room if possible, but I have learned through my experience with Professor Uzuki that these kinds of rooms were untidy for a reason...and the owners of these kinds of rooms don't appreciate someone cleaning it without their supervision. "Here it is." Professor Colbert said from within an adjacent room. He emerged after a moment with a metal doll, which had small gears fitted in specific places inside. After a quick scan, I found that it was made completely out of copper. It was an inadvisable material to create exposed machinery with due to issues with durability, conductivity to heat and electricity, as well as a low melting point relative to other available metals. However, it was also cheap and readily available. So, as a work-in-progress prototype, it was an acceptable temporary work material. "This was sent to me by a friend in Germania. He works as an alchemist and specializes in metallurgy. He is currently working on a new series of mechanical dolls that will be able to move on their own without the specific need for an Earth Mage to be present to create, maintain, and move them. He hopes to be able to one day move dolls such as this using any kind of magical energy." The professor gave a background of the origin of the doll as he placed it on a table for me to examine. An interesting idea. The current magic system dictates that the only ones most suited to using golems and other mechanical constructs were Earth Mages. The possibility of being able to move those kinds of constructs or those of similar make using other sources of energy would be revolutionary to say the least. However, as with all innovative concepts, the actual probability of success will only increase through constant experimentation, learning and experience. Unfortunately, such concepts would likely have significant challenges outside the controlled environments of laboratories and work shops. The current system of Magocratic Monarchy that Halkeginia has will likely frown upon the general use of this invention as it goes against the status quo that has been maintained for the past six-millennia. Likely, the first actual application for such an invention was destined in the battlefield instead of a classroom. More on the invention itself. I found little differences between it and the magically controlled dolls that Earth Mages use. However, the most significant difference was the added weight due to additional internal components. Gears were places strategically throughout the body and at the joints to facilitate transfer of energy from the source before converting it into kinetic motion. However, the current setup of gears, as well as the complete reliance on them, will lower efficiency while increasing the chance of breakdown. From what I could find, it seemed that the framework and components of the invention were based on the fundamental concepts found in the human skeletal system. However, a body working soley using a skeletal structure alone will quickly break down due to lack of additional support as well as from wear and tear. This invention did not take into account a body's need for muscles, tendons, and ligaments...or at least equivalents of them. "Well, do you think it has promise? I know that this might seem like a poor attempt at a cheap toy compared to you, but I still wanted to know if we even had a chance to try." Professor Colbert asked me excitedly, his eyes glittering in anticipation. I considered the man's words and weighed the currently known factors that would help or hinder the development and production of such an invention. I concluded that it was improbable in this era barring a massive technological upheaval or a radical, and likely dangerous, new innovation. It was too soon. The materials and technology required to make something that would quantify as a machine that would satisfy the goals set by Professor Colbert's friend simply did not exist. I lifted the prototype in my hands and gave it one more scan before placing it back down. I turned to the professor and shook my head. The concept was sound and was definitely possible, otherwise I would not exist. However, there were too many constraints in this realm for such a thing to be accomplished. "I...see..." Professor Colbert responded in disappointment. I noted that his saddened expression cleared up in but a moment before he returned to his usual demeanor. "Well, I suppose that it was to be expected. Although I don't think my friend will be giving up so easily. I will also provide him any help that he needs as well." The man said with a smile. This was also a known cornerstone of true innovators, to persevere in despite possible obstacles that would hinder success. Professor Colbert then showed me some other inventions that he and several people he was in contact with were developing. Some were more practical to develop and use than most but it did show that at the very least, he was not the only one who was trying to progress their society through technological innovation in addition to established magic. I left the academy premises to meet with Mistress Louise just as my internal clock struck eleven-thirty in the morning. Based on the vitals scan I did before I left, I concluded that my mistress was tired, hungry, and thirsty. With that in mind, I set off with a basket of food and drink in one hand and a bucket of water with a towel in the other. Here I was, saving the day. I crossed a small copse of trees before arriving at the clearing my mistress specified as our rendezvous point. I realized that I was at the right place when I noticed several small craters as well as destroyed tress and boulders that show evidence of explosive detonation. I looked around and found my mistress sitting down while facing away from me. She had her legs spead out and was leaning back with her arms supporting her weight. Her head was tilted back and it looked like she had her eyes closed and had sweat all over her face. All in all, it was not the kind of position one would expect from a young noble woman...or any young woman in general. "Fuga." I called out to my mistress before approching her. "What took you so loooong? I'm thirsty!" Mistress Louise complained out loud without moving from her position. I blinked at her complaint. Since she never asked for any drinking water aside from the water she will use for lunch and the rest of the afternoon, I had expected that she already had a means of rehydrating herself in the interim. It appears that I had overestimated my mistress' capacity for self-reliance. I walked up to her and pulled out one of the wine bottles that was filled with clean water and handed it my mistress. She immediately grabbed it before sitting up straight and started drinking. "Fuga..." I tried to caution her to drink slower, as drinking water or any other liquid too quickly while dehydrated tended to result in- "Augh! Augh!" That. I rubbed her back at a steady rhythm as she struggled to catch her breath after a coughing fit. When she finally calmed down, she once again tried to down the bottle of water but I stopped her from repeating her mistake my grabbing the end of the bottle. She glared at me but I ignored it and simply gestured with my movement that she should drink slower. She finally understood my intention and safely managed to drink a little over half of the bottle's capacity. "Gwaaaaahh! You could have just told me to drink slower." She stated in mild annoyance even though I did try to tell her and that she would not have understood my regardless. "Fuga." I decided to move us forward and revealed the foodstuffs I had prepared for her lunch. She looked at the food before unconsciously swallowing, her rumbling stomach soon after indicated that she approved of my selection. It appeared that Mistress Louise did not bother to get breakfast before setting of to her training either. I will need to talk to Yuka about how our mistress handles herself without any supervision. "Haaah...I just can't believe they were right..." My mistress spoke out before taking another bite from her cheese. I blinked at the sudden start of a conversation and tilted my head in response, my most effective sign that I had no idea what she was talking about. She glanced at me before looking at the field she was using for training. "Cirno-nee and Yuka both commented last night that my broken spells were weaker from before. They said that my range, force, and area of effect went down even though my accuracy was improving a lot." She continued as if she was talking through me rather than at me. Her words were a bit concerning though. Spells don't normally become weaker, even the broken spells my mistress uses. A magician can run low on magical energy and not be able to cast a spell because of it, but the lowering of statistics of the spell itself was rather unusual. I inferred that it may have something to do with the triple-casted Void Element spell she used during the battle at Tarbes. "They said that the Void Fusion spell I used that combined Dispel and Explosion caused it." And it seemed that Yuka and the ice fairy Cirno came to the same conclusion. I thought about it for a moment before changing the scanning parameters of my nanomachines in order to measure my mistress' magical energy. I blinked when I found that her energy levels were only at fifteen percent of what the estimated capacity was. I sensed that her body was producing more energy to make up for it, but the rate of replenishment was rather low. It would take her an estimated eighty-six days to be able to fully replenish her reserves provided that she does not use any Void Element spells in the mean time. "Cirno-nee thought that my body was just not used to actually casting proper spells, not even talking about what I did at Tarbes, which was why I'm having a harder time to recover." Again, they managed to get roughly the same conclusion. While I expect that Mistress Louise's efficiency at casting true Void spells will improve the more she uses them, she will need to deal with the aftermath of each major spell she casts until she gets better at it. It was a very inefficient system. Even though the output could easily outclass any convensional spell this realm had if given the right opportunity, the requirements for casting and the energy cost made them impractical. Mistress Louise continued her meal in silence after that, likely thinking about what to do about her situation and what to do about it in the future. I stayed with Mistress Louise through her afternoon training to be able to confirm the phenomenon of the drop in her spells' range and output. The effective range of her broken spells fell by fifteen percent. The force of each explosion dropped by twenty-two percent. The area of effect of each spell dropped by forty percent. However, her accuracy had increased by thirty percent and the delay between casting to actual explosion decreased by twenty percent. In conclusion, the effectiveness of her broken spells decreased but her efficiency at casting them and hitting a target increased. Mistress Louise was visibly tired from her training and was almost unable to walk the entire distance back to her room. I had dropped off the bucket of water at the entrance of the dormitory tower to take care of it later. I planned on bringing the basket and the empty wine bottles back to the kitchen after attending to my mistress. "Finally...I thought I wasn't going to make it..." She stated tiredly as she opened the door to her room, eager to get some rest. "And where have you been? Hmmmm?" The voice of a woman, estimated to be at her mid to late twenties based on tone and inflection, startled my mistress. I did no have my sensors active at the time so I was not able to detect the presence of the woman beforehand. She had long blonde wavy hair and was about as tall as Miss Matilda. She had sharp amber eyes and was wearing glasses, likely because of poor vision for one reason or another. She had a flat chest and a modest figure, but the way she stood before my mistress had a presence that dictated that she was not one to be trifled with. She also seemed very familiar for some reason. "Big Sister Eleanor!" My master exclaimed, solving the mystery. The older woman, now designated as Eleanor, suddenly closed the distance between her and her sister and proceeded to pinch my mistress' cheeks. "Don't you 'Big Sis Eleanor' me! Do you have any idea how long I waited here?" Miss Eleanor said with no small sense of annoyance. "I'm showee~!" My mistress quickly apologized as she continued to be pinched by her elder sister. I was not certain how to deal with this sort of situation. While Miss Eleanor was obviously causing my mistress great distress, I do not think she would appreciate me 'removing' the threat. The blonde woman continued to pinch her sister's cheecks before finally noticing that I was there. She gave me a measured look before narrowing here eyes on the exposed parts of my armor. "And who are you?" She asked me, while continuing her assault on my apparently helpless mistress. "Fuga." I answered impassively, making the woman stop altogether. "What did you say? Who is this, little runt?" She suddenly asked before escalating her attacks from cheek pinching to a headlock. "She's my maid! Her name is Ruukoto! She's from a far away place!" My mistress yelled out while struggling from the hold. Her sister let her go before looking right into my eyes for a long while. "You're...not alive...are you?" She suddenly asked, making my mistress gasp in surprise. I was impressed at her skill at observation and her intuition to be able to figure that out simply by looking at me. It wasn't like it was obvious or anything. "Where did you find this? Is it a golem? Where did it come from? What are you using to move it? Amazing lifelike texture..." Miss Eleanore quickly asked a series of questions before commenting on the artificial skin on my face. It seemed that her attention was completely shifted from my mistress to me. From the preciseness and deductive order of her questions, I inferred that Miss Eleanor was an academic...or one who pursued an intelectual field at least. "I can't tell you." Louise quietly said, painting her as the main target once more. "What do you mean you don't know! It works for you right? How did you find it? How did you activate it? How. Does. It. Work?" Miss Eleanore resumed her assault on my master with a series of questions while digging her fists into the sides of my mistress' head. While I always appreciated a healthy sense of curiosity, I did not appreciate the way she was interrogating her sister. I decided to save my mistress further pain and insult by activating 'White-Noise' to speak with Miss Eleanore directly. "Please cease your actions at once. Mistress Louise has a very good reason for refusing to answer your inquiries." I stated in fluent Halkeginian, making both sisters look at me in surprise, though likely for different reasons. "It speaks!" Miss Eleanore suddenly exclaimed before releasing her sister and walking right up to me. "What are you? A golem? Who made you? Where did you come from? Are there more of you? Why are you with my bratty little sister-" She started another series of questioning to which... "Hey!" My mistress reacted with offense. She continued with the questions before waiting for me to respond, her expression serious and her eyes sharp. "I'm afraid I cannot disclose any information. All I can provide is that I am Combat Maid Gynoid Ruukoto Unit-One Version-Four. While I cannot divulge any information about my origins or abilities, please know that I am in a lifelong contract of service under you younger sister." I clearly stated before shifting back to my normal operating parameters. "What? You can't do that! I'm a noble! You have to answer my questions!" Miss Eleanor did not seem to appreciate my response and started to show her resemblence to my mistress my going into a fit. "Fuga." I responded. Miss Eleanore froze with an incredulous expression while Mistress Louise snorted out a laugh. Her elder sister heard that and quickly glared at my mistress. "You don't want to talk, fine! I'll have plenty of time for that once you and the little runt come back home! Mother and father summoned you back. I don't know what you did, but you better be ready." Miss Eleanor stated and explained the reason she was even here. My mistress' only response was to gulp audibly at what was in store for her back in her home. I made sure to leave a note and a 'Hey-Listen' for Yuka since he was yet to return by the time we left. Mistress Louise made no mention of her familar as she packed her things and got on the carriage that her sister brought with her. Since I was a servant, a separate and more simple carriage was arranged for me. I looked at my mistress for her reaction and she simply shrugged and told me to get on. It seemed that she was apprehensive about letting her elder sister know about my capabilities and even the existence of Yuka. She seemed determined to delay the inevitable as much as possble even as we left the academy. At the very least, this trip will give me a chance to further update my internal map of Tristain. Zero no Tsukaima Fanon < Top Of Page > Table Content Chapter 19 Be Careful What You Wish For << >> Chapter 20 Be Careful What You Wish For Category:Chapters